The Black Dragon
by Reika Itsumi
Summary: Our favorite cover hero, Zhao Yun, dreams a strange dream...and is left behind for sleeping in! What will he do in his spare time now that he missed a battle? And what will become the meaning of his dream? -I'm finally getting better at summaries...YAY!-


Chapter 1 - Dark Dreams

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A barren and desert land stretched as far as the eye could see. The wasteland, obscured by black and white vision, kicked up dust storms from strong winds blowing their way through the pruned earth. Small cracks divided like human veins throughout the land, giving the dry land an old, rustic aspect.

Lying in the middle of this deserted land, a young warrior clad in armor. A green, decorated headband wrapped securely around his forehead as well as a complex outfit, filled with greens and cream colors. Dragon designs were imprinted on the warrior's armor and clothing in gold, giving him a more unique guise. His body seemed in good shape, just like any warrior's body should be, but his face appeared to be more tender at the first glance. His long, brown hair was tied back in a ponytail that lingered out from behind his lying down position.

A small gust of wind blew past the slender young face. Only a few moments later did the warrior open his eyes to a black and white world. Slowly, as his vision cleared, he sat up and looked around. He'd never seen anyplace so barren before, not even out on the battlefields he had fought over.

As he continued to scan over the dusted earth, he stood up, patting off the dust that had collected onto his clothing from the random dust clouds. Knowing that this place wasn't normal, he wandered about anyway, to explore his surroundings. It seemed like days had passed, but it had only been a few hours when he spotted something in the distance. The warrior didn't know if it was an enemy, stalking him like a panther would follow its prey, but it was life. So, like any stranded commoner would do, he strayed off his track to nowhere and headed towards his new destination.

Upon arriving in front of the object, he realized how big it had been compared to himself. A giant, black winged dragon laid before him, sprawled out just like he had been a few hours ago. The dragon looked ancient, its scales and claws worn and its black skin faded by sunlight and congregating dust. For an odd reason, a strange looking saddle that had been specially crafted had been located on the dragon's back.

The warrior wondered if he could get any closer to examine this saddle. If he aroused the dragon, he may be in serious trouble…but he would be able to handle it like any other situation he had been in before. His unmatched strength had remained superior to all who dared take a stand against him. He had defeated 1,000 troops in one battle, showing that he could take anything that had been thrown at him so a two ton dragon shouldn't be able to bring him down.

He proceeded upon the dragon, getting a closer look at the saddle. Upon his examination of the dragon saddle, he noticed small lettering along the edge. He squinted, trying to read it with difficulty. Eventually, he had noticed it was his named etched into the solid material.

Just as sudden as he had read his name off the saddle, the dragon's eyes shot open, giving off a bright red glare with a narrow pupil, alert and ready to battle. The warrior jumped back, taking up a defensive stance. The dragon stood up on its hind legs, showering the warrior and the earth around him with mounds of dust. The black dragon stretched its long, worn and faded wings and gave a mighty howl, showing the long and unusually white fangs.

The fighter, shaken by the prodigious roar, took a few steps back. He was beginning to wonder if he could fight such an unruly beast, but he wouldn't back down. No, he wasn't known for that. He had courage, the main source of a battle well fought and won. As weaponless as the soldier was, he ran up to the dragon's tail and climbed it. The dragon thrashed about, making the warrior loose his balance, but he was persistent and held onto the rough scales. He slowly army crawled his way up to the head of the dragon, but was suddenly thrown off.

Landing into the shadow of the dragon, the warrior winced in pain. Having landed on his back, he had become completely paralyzed. The dragon sniffed at the warrior and then brought down a colossal claw upon the warrior. As the warrior lay there, trying to withstand the significant amount of force, he heard a voice call to him.

"Wake up…" it echoed continuously, until the fantasy world opened up to another reality. "You do realize that you're late for the battle Zhao Yun." The young man reported. Zhao Yun slowly sat up and tried to remember the dream he had before realizing what the messenger had claimed.

"Wait…I am?! Ugh, I'm late!" The dragon warrior jumped out of his cot he had been resting in and went to the storage area where he kept all of his armor. "I can't afford to be late to a battle! This is unlike me!" He hurriedly clicked the armor clasps together and made sure everything was secured.

"Don't be in too much of a hurry Lord Zhao Yun…they sent Wei Yan in your place so you can relax." The messenger informed. Zhao Yun looked back at the messenger with a surprised expression. "Lord Zhuge Liang said to let you be so you can be rested up for the harder battles."

Stunned and shocked by his comrades decision, Zhao Yun stood as still as a statue. "W-what? Why didn't they bother to wake me!? They should know that I'm ready for a battle whenever it's available!" He exclaimed, making the messenger flinch.

"I-I'm sorry Master Zhao Yun, but that was his or—"

"I do not care what the Prime Minister orders! I will go and join them in battle immediately!"

"Y-You can't do that! Wei Yan was put in charge of your troops…"Zhao Yun gave a baffled glare to the man across the room, which was now ready to leave the room in fear. Eventually, Zhao Yun slowly walked out the door and down corridors, the lowly messenger following him and explaining more of what their prime minister had planned ever since he had slept in. He eventually reached the main hall and took his usual seat and looked around the room. At least he wasn't completely alone. A few of the lower generals had also been left behind to protect the Shu force's precious castle.

"Why…why would Lord Liu Bei let me sit here like this? I know that even he would have woken me up to go to battle." Zhao Yun asked himself as he took a relaxed position. He caught a glimpse of the dragon mural that had been painted on the wall behind the seat where their current emperor, Liu Bei, would sit during meetings and other events. The dragon was the symbol of Shu, symbolizing the virtue and courage they had to fight. Oddly, the dragon in the mural reminded the young warrior of something…

Zhao Yun's wandering thoughts were interrupted by a firm hand on his shoulder. He turned to the suspect and met face to face with another young warrior clad in green armor. His bright green eyes emphasized the darkness of his brown hair that had been pulled back into a ponytail.

"J-Jiang Wei, you startled me." Zhao Yun stated. Jiang Wei hesitated before tilting his head a little and a small apologetic smile.

"Sorry. I thought you were deep in thought…Once again, sorry to have startled you." Jiang Wei apologized. He then moved from behind Zhao Yun to take a seat by the Dragon Warrior. "I see that you slept in on your battle today." He assumed, looking at his comrade through the corner of his eye. He saw him scratch the back of his head in shame.

"Yes…I did." Zhao Yun looked off to a corner, embarrassed by his misfortune. "But I don't understand why no one took care to wake me." He sighed and rested his arms. "It not only disappoints me, but dishonors me in a way, considering the battle was to take place at Chang Sha…my home area." Jiang nodded his head in understanding.

"I know how you must feel, but even so, you should be able to rally up some troops and take them with you to the battlefield. They will need reinforcements considering Wei is the enemy."

"I would…but that's just that problem. The troops I had specially trained for this event were handed down to Wei Yan. So, the troops I had are now under his command…" A small amount of silence drifted between the comments.

Zhao Yun began to speak once more after remembering something that kept bothering him. "Jiang Wei…do you happen to know anyone who could interpret dreams?" Jiang Wei gazed at him for a moment, thinking through the possibilities.

"I'm not too sure, but if you were to ask Pang Tong I'm sure he could try his best. Why?" Zhao Yun hesitated before answering.

"I've been having the same dream for the past week now…I'm always lying in the middle of a dry wasteland and eventually I get beaten down by a giant dragon." Jiang Wei seemed more interested now. He put his elbows on the table and clasped his hands together, resting his head on them in interest.

"Really? There must be a reason that the dragon would have beaten you down, Zhao Yun." Zhao Yun gazed at Jiang Wei and then tilted his head.

"You know…maybe YOU could be the one to depict my dream. It seems like you already have some sort of idea…" Zhao Yun suggested. Jiang Wei lifted his head a little in surprised at the suggestion.

"I was only making an assumption…but I could tell you what I think everything means…not that it'd be completely accurate." He explained uneasily. Zhao Yun smiled and gave a small chuckle.

"Ever since we're here and there isn't an attack, I think we have some time to think out this dream of mine." Just as Zhao Yun ended his sentence, a huge booming noise came from outside the palaces walls. Both Zhao Yun and Jiang Wei stood up quickly, getting into a defensive stance. "I may have to reconsider my words…" The Dragon warrior stated.

"Shall we investigate?" Jiang Wei signaled to the weapon storage. Zhao Yun nodded and they both charged to the door of the storage and pulled out their weapons and headed for the noise that had rung through the castle.

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Please comment. I haven't put up many stories lately due to lack of internet...and the lack of interest. BUT I'M MAKING MY RETURN!!! (smiles) So please give me a good report on this story!! (meaning that I want you guys to give me good, honest feedback with corrections I should make and ect.) Fullmetal Outcast (my name may also change again soon...I'm so indecisive!) 


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